The Ghana National Fire Service is calling on members of the general public to be conscious of fire safety to help complement the efforts of firefighters during emergencies.
The fire officers have also urged management of the Kejetia Market to implement all fire safety measures recommended to the facility to help reduce the severity of any fire that may be recorded at the market in the future.
The Ashanti regional fire commander, ACFO1 Henry Giwah made the remarks when he addressed the media after a fire simulation exercise at the Kejetia Market as part of efforts to check the preparedness of emergency elements put in place at the market.
“We are urging the management of the market to implement some fire safety measures that have been recommended to prevent,” ACFO1 Henry Giwah reiterated.
ACFO1 Henry Giwah also highlighted the need for the general public to be fire safety conscious to help in firefighting.
He also called on the public to give accurate information on the location and the nature of fire incidents when they call the fire service for assistance.
“We are advising the public to give accurate information when reporting fire incidents,” he advised.
Meanwhile, the leadership of the traders at the Kejetia Market shared some items donated to victims of the fire incident from the New Patriotic Party (NPP).
The President of the Federation of Kumasi Traders, Nana Akwasi Prempeh speaking to Citi News said, “Of all the 52 victims, 33 persons had their shops completely burnt down to ashes. For these victims, we gave GH¢4,600 each. The 19 victims, who had their shops partially burnt, got GH¢2,000”.
One of the victims of the fire whose three shops were totally destroyed speaking to Citi News after receiving his part of the donation said, “I appreciate this gesture, the donation means a lot to me”.
Citi News understands that the committee that was set up by government to look into the incident has finished its work. The content of the committee’s work is however yet to be made public.
On March 15, 2023, over 50 shops were destroyed at the Kejetia Market following a fire incident at the facility.
The incident caused the destruction of items worth millions of Ghana cedis and the complete wreckage of dozens of shops in the market.
The incident subsequently led to the closure of the market to allow for structural integrity tests until the non-affected area was later reopened for business one week after the fire outbreak.